Several explanations of the willingness to fight and die, if necessary, may be dismissed at once. The author dismissed that soldiers on both sides fought out of fear of their officers, fearing them more than they did the battle. Frederick the Great had described this form as idyllic, but it did not exist in ideal or practice in either the American or British army. The British soldiers typically showed a more professional spirit than the American soldiers. The British soldiers showed an attitude of confidence in their skill and pride in belonging to an old established institution. The British regiments also carried proud names, such as the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, the Black Watch, and the King's Own-whose officers usually behaved quite bravely
